Monday, January 18, 2010

Workout Volume & Ab Plank Tip

The gym was a lot quieter today than 2 weeks ago...have that many people dropped out already? It felt like November in there.

One of the reasons I think people drop out so fast is from the muscle soreness they get by trying out high volume programs in magazines...the big mistake most people make is doing too much volume.

Even YOU are probably doing too much volume. So here's what you need to do right now...

Take a look at every exercise, set, & rep in your workout program.

Is it there just to add volume & time to your workout or is it there with purpose, actually getting you closer to your goals?

Remember that training is simply a stimulus being applied to the body with the purpose of getting a specific adaptation.

In other words, you should train to get results, not just to do more exercises and spend a lot of time working out.

If you do that, you'll save time, have less soreness, and maybe even get MORE results by doing less.

Here was today's workout for me...

Workout:

1) Hang Clean

2A) Bench Press - I had a couple of months off the bench, and now I'm back to 225 for sets of 7 2B) T-Bar Row

3) DB Incline

4) Triceps experimental exercise

This was a shortened workout because I'm filming the TT for Abs Phase 3 video tonight. Should be the last session of filming...still trying to get this DVD set out for a BALLANTYNE'S DAY release.

Speaking of abs...I bet you didn't know this tip about the plank exercise...

Can you do a plank for 2 minutes straight?

That is Dr. Stuart McGill's recommendation for healthy people. Dr. McGill, a low back pain expert, has found that abdominal endurance corresponds with less back pain, so he recommends you build up your plank endurance to 2 minutes. If you can NOT do that, you are at greater risk of low back issues.

2 comments:

Great point about volume. I suspect people think that just because they are in the gym longer, they are working harder and improving. Those are often the people that go to the gym and talk to people more than they actually train. Waste of time!

Craig - Family had to give up the YMCA membership recently. I've been pretty good about doing what I can at home, but I'm stuck with 35 and 20 lb. DBs and no other equipment (bench, etc.). Have a place to do pullups. Do I have any chance of still adding some muscle, or am I just going to be able to maintain? Or, speaking of volume, do I crank that up to make up for the lack of poundage?ThanksJay